Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Alex Rodriguez is about to have himself quite an offseason. Preempting the World Series wasn't enough; now A-Rod will embark on the quest known as free agency. What will he choose? If you were him, what would you choose?

With a nod to the classic "Choose Your Own Adventure" series, we at the MLB FanHouse decided to offer you those choices. Dive in, and see what you'd do if you lived inside No. 13's skull. The choices are almost endless ...___________

You have just awoken from a terrible dream. You look around. It's impossible to see anything in the dark beyond the eerie glow of the your wall-mounted HDTV.

You slowly realize you are watching the eighth inning of the World Series, the latest in which you have not participated. Ken Rosenthal is on the screen, and his words send a chill up your spine.

"Alex Rodriguez has decided to opt out of his contract, Scott Boras has informed the media tonight ...Boras cited uncertainty within the Yankees organization as Rodriguez's reasons ..."

So ... it is done.

You could listen to the reaction, but you know what everyone will say. Instead, you flip the TV off and head downstairs to your sparkling in-home gym. Better start working out now, you think. Lots of people to disprove. There always are.

Because you are Alex Rodriguez. And you have some choices to make.

You've now opted out of the remaining three years on your contract, three years that would have netted you about $90 million. You are a free agent with limitless earning potential.

You can:

1. Decide to call the Steinbrenners and apologize for the opt-out while offering to negotiate a deal that brings you back to New York at a higher price than your contract, but a lower price than the market's. This, you think, would be a really nice thing to do, and would help get you back in New York's -- and baseball's -- good graces.

or ...

2. You can test free agency. Scott tells you that lots of teams are interested, including the Angels, Dodgers, Cubs, Tigers ... heck, maybe even the Red Sox! Plus, you've been through the ringer in pinstripes. You've seen that nothing -- short of a World Series -- will endear you to fans, and the organization really doesn't seem to care for you too much either. If you choose free agency, really choose it, you may be able to say goodbye to New York forever.